Jan. 6 committee adviser on public hearings: People will be ‘absolutely surprised’

Former GOP Rep. Denver Riggleman (Va.), a former adviser to the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, said the panel’s upcoming public hearings will be “exciting” for people to see.

The panel announced last week it would hold the first of a series of public hearings during a prime-time slot at 8 p.m. on Thursday, the conclusion of the committee’s work after conducting hundreds of interviews in a yearlong investigation. 

The committee has not said what witnesses will appear at the public hearings, but Riggleman told CNN “State of the Union” co-anchor Jake Tapper that the hearings will be “very concise” and will bring all the components of the investigation together.

“I think people are going to be absolutely surprised how much was known with multiple groups,” Riggleman said. 

“And I think that’s what’s going to be exciting to see the committee — there’s some very intelligent, very talented investigators behind the doors,” he continued.

Riggleman indicated that the committee will hold six public hearings. The hearings are expected to include a combination of prime-time and day-time slots, although the complete schedule has yet to be announced.

The prime-time slot indicates the committee is eager to make a case to a broad audience, but polling has also found that many right-leaning respondents believe it’s time to “move on” from reviewing the attack. 

A number of Republican lawmakers view the committee as illegitimate after Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) rejected some GOP picks for the committee last year. Reps. Liz Cheney (Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) serve as the panel’s sole Republican members.

“The American people have to look at this from the beginning, take their notes and understand that the committee has to build the case in a very solid, facts-based way,” Riggleman said on Sunday. “There’s not going to be a lot of partisan whining or screaming.”

The committee has conducted more than 1,000 interviews, reportedly including discussions with senior aides to former Vice President Mike Pence and White House officials. 

“It’s pretty apparent that at some points, President Trump knew what was going on,” Riggleman said on Sunday.

This story was updated at 12:46 p.m. on June 6 to reflect that Riggleman is no longer acting as an adviser to the Jan. 6 panel.